Monster History
by Poofiemus
Summary: It's exactly what it says in the title. Starts when the Mans and the Mons are still living together, and continues through...well, I don't know how far yet!
1. Lesson 1

Monster History, Lesson 1  
  
Over an estimated 20,000 years ago, two groups of creatures formed, the Mans and the Mons. It has long been understood that the Mans chased the Mons away and the Mons eventually became known as Monsters. But until recently, it was unknown how exactly this event took place. The full story is presented here.  
  
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In an area of modern-day human world Ukraine, an earthquake uplifted a deposit of radioactive material, presumably uranium or plutonium, which brought a rush of extreme mutations upon the local Cro-Magnon population. Some of the infants died from the changes, but others came out healthy but bizarre, with features like fur or tails. Even after the population moved, there were still some of these oddballs.  
  
After some years in a new location, they began to separate these oddballs from the 'normal' humans. The mutants became known as the Mons. The Mons stayed in tents and lean-tos outside the cave community that belonged to the Mans, and were given only the dregs of whatever they killed or collected with the Mans. Still, they did their best to stay in a peaceful community state.  
  
The Mons did not bother the Mans, and so far, the Mans did not bother them. They stayed within their circles of friends and relations, except when another Mon was born to one of the Mans. The new Mon would be accepted warmly to the group, creating barley a ripple in the fabric of their lives.  
  
Quietly, the Mons began to develop their own separate culture, of which the Mans severely disapproved. They performed wedding ceremonies, coming-of- age rituals, and funeral services among their number in their own style. They had their own music, which varied greatly from the Mans' music in the way that Mon music always had some sort of minor sound, which reflected their oppression.  
  
Some of the younger Mons were clustered in the center of the community on day, discussing their view of the situation.  
  
"They take all the good stuff and leave us with nothing but gristle and harsh words!" One Eye said. "We should storm up to them and demand that they give us something decent!"  
  
"That's too obvious and dangerous," said Long Tail, a tailed Mon with green eyes and three projections sticking out of his head. "We need to be more subtle. Just sneak up at night and take what we need. No one will ever have to know who really did it."  
  
"And still take their insults?" asked Sharp Mind, who had about five eyes and the shrewdest mind of them all. "No. We need an uprising to really change things."  
  
"We'll still need supplies if we rise against them. We should steal things first and build up provisions and then rebel," argued Long Tail.  
  
Their bickering and planning came to an abrupt halt as one of the elder Mons passed by them. Following him was a female Mon with four legs and four arms named Lithe, who Long Tail considered very attractive, and a tall, furry and conforming Mon that went by Silent Wind.  
  
"Good morning, Lithe," Long Tail greeted her, bowing and extending a hand to her. "It is a pleasure to see you, like finding a flower outside your lean-to that has sprouted overnight."  
  
Lithe seemed flattered. Silent Wind, however, did not like Long Tail, and stepped in front of his foster sister. "Leave her alone, Long Tail. Everyone knows you and your friends only want to make trouble for us."  
  
"We already have trouble, Silent Wind. Any trouble we make will be an improvement, seeing as it can't really get much worse."  
  
Silent Wind scoffed at this. "It can always get worse. You should just appreciate what you have, Long Tail, and not mess with it."  
  
One Eye snickered. "You sound like my mother," he accused, still snickering.  
  
"Seems strange that your mother has the right idea and you don't," Silent Wind retorted. "Maybe you should try listening to her for a change."  
  
Silent Wind left in a huff, Lithe following reluctantly with a glance over her shoulder at Long Tail.  
  
"You know, we should probably get going," One Eye brought up. "The matchmaking ceremony is tonight."  
  
"Yeah, and it's your turn, Long Tail," Sharp Mind said. "You've got that cleansing to do."  
  
"Don't remind me," Long Tail groaned. "Who knows who they'll stick me with."  
  
"You want Lithe, don't you?" chuckled One Eye, elbowing the tailed Mon.  
  
"Yeah, but with my luck, I won't get her," he complained dismally. "I'll probably wind up with Slug Singer."  
  
They all groaned and shuddered. Slug Singer was the community's throat singer, and she was the ugliest of the Mons by any standard.  
  
Long Tail went back home, where his mother, one of the Mans who was unwilling to give up her son to someone else, was waiting for him. She gave him the most thorough scrubbing he had ever endured, but he didn't complain while she lamented that he had gotten so dirty on such an important day, and that her little boy was almost grown up. He was too preoccupied with the concept that his mate for life was going to be chosen tonight, and that he had no idea who it would be. He was naturally very nervous.  
  
Before he knew it, it was nightfall and he was being led to the forest clearing in which the ceremony would take place. He found himself surrounded by music, which most of us would think similar to Russian or Jewish traditional music. He was blindfolded as soon as he got there, and all of the females who were unmatched were blindfolded too, including Lithe and Slug Singer.  
  
The community Holy Mon of sorts, Wise Ear (named for his large, moveable ears), began a lecture about responsibility and love. Long Tail didn't listen, mostly because he had heard it before, but also because he was terrified. After the speech was finished, his mother and the parents and guardians of the females joined Wise Ear to discuss who would be a suitable match for him. It seemed to take forever.  
  
Long Tail heard shuffling footsteps after the eternity had passed. Someone was next to him, and he sensed that someone else was leading one of the girls up to him. His heart was in his ears as he felt someone's hands get placed in his. The Mon next to him removed his blindfold, and Long Tail got to look at his future bride.  
  
It was Lithe.  
  
Long Tail felt an urge to do several things at once. He wanted to jump up and down cheering in happiness, he wanted to pick up Lithe and twirl her, he wanted to hug his mother and thank her for making sure it was Lithe who was his bride, and, most of all, he wanted to kiss Lithe. However, due to the circumstances, he wouldn't be able to do any of that until the actual wedding ceremony, which would take place after one full cycle of the moon.  
  
He was given a plot of land on which to build the home he and Lithe would share, and Lithe was given the hides to make their bed. He started work on it promptly and happily the next morning. He would not be allowed to talk to Lithe until after the wedding, so the least he could do was give her the best home he could.  
  
At about noon, One Eye and Sharp Mind paid him a visit.  
  
"Congratulations, you lucky guy!" One Eye smiled.  
  
"Yeah, Long Tail!" Sharp Mind cheered. "Lithe's walking on a cloud over it. Silent Wind's throwing a fit over how happy she is. You know him. 'How can you be so happy to be marrying such a troublemaker? He'll never support you! Blah-blah-blab-blah.' That kind of thing."  
  
Long Tail laughed. "He's got no clue what he's talking about. A bit narrow-minded, that fellow is. Never even considered that I might actually care about her."  
  
With his friends' help, Long Tail had about half of the house finished that day. He took great care to make it both roomy and sturdy. He had it done the next day. After that time seemed to both fly and drag as he waited for the wedding while making preparations. He was kept so busy that he had no spare moments, but was thinking about Lithe all the while.  
  
The ceremony went by in a blur. Afterwards Long Tail looked Lithe in her blue eyes, and blurted, "All month long I've thought of countless things I wanted to say to you, and now I can't think of a single one!"  
  
She giggled. "That's okay. I can't think of anything, either."  
  
Both Long Tail and Lithe were a bit surprised by how quickly they acclimated to married life. And they were also surprised at one particular view they shared.  
  
"You know," Lithe said one night, "I think it's unfair the way the Mans treat us."  
  
"So do I," answered Long Tail, a little startled. "I also think we need to do something about it."  
  
Lithe agreed.  
  
"And we will, Lithe," Long Tail promised. "Any day now, Lithe. Any day now."  
  
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I know this is a little odd, but I'm putting my disclaimer at the end of a chapter this time. I don't own the rights to Monsters, Inc. "Any day now" is actually a title of a deleted song from the film Fiddler on the Roof, meant to tie the Mons' plight to the predicament of the characters in Fiddler. I don't own the rights to that either. Duh. This story is an expansion of a small segment on the bonus disc on MI, and I don't own the rights to that segment either. I know this story is breaking the mold a bit, but it had been nagging at me for some time and had to get it down. If you like it, review. If you don't, review anyway. I won't continue if you guys don't like it, but I will take constructive criticism. Thank you! 


	2. Lesson 2

Monster History, Lesson 2  
  
Some number of months had passed since Long Tail and Lithe had their discussion, and there had been a few changes. Silent Wind had been matched and married to another furry Mon called Soft Fur, for obvious reasons. This match was good not only for the pair, but for Long Tail and his friends as well, because he was now occupied out of pointing fingers at "trouble-makers". Long Tail, Sharp Mind, One Eye, and now Lithe were making plans to bring changes to the Mons' situation.  
  
"Look, if we rebel, we need to surprise them," Lithe reasoned. "Then they'll have no choices made to surprise us."  
  
"Not too bad, Lithe," Sharp Mind complimented. "But we need tons of supplies, in case something goes wrong, and the only way to get them is by stealing them. That'll give us away."  
  
"He's got a point," One Eye concurred.  
  
"They both do," said Long Tail. "I have an idea: we first sneak a few things out of the Mans' cave, to get the layout and stuff like that down. Then, we send one group to rebel, as both a statement and a distraction, and then we send another group to swipe large amounts of supplies while the Mans are all busy."  
  
"Brilliant!" Lithe beamed, and she kissed her husband on the cheek.  
  
"Well, that's all fine and dandy," interjected One Eye, "But where are we going to get enough people to pull a stunt like that off?"  
  
"That's the easiest part," Lithe said. "Using our individual charms, we get the rest of the community involved and believing in our cause. Then we figure out who'll be best at what and assign them to groups, like some will do the actual stealing, others will hide it and organize it, and then the final group rebels and attracts all the attention. It's foolproof."  
  
"Should we start now?" Sharp Mind suggested with a grin.  
  
They set off to their task. Long Tail's mother was first to jump on the travois, so to speak. They got quite a few others in the community up to it fairly quickly. They even got Soft Fur, though she refused to try to get Silent Wind, her own husband, to join. Soon he and Wise Ear were the only ones left to convince.  
  
One day, Silent Wind was complaining about the current situation when Long Tail was in earshot.  
  
"If the Mans would just give us decent hides, we wouldn't have to replace them so often," Silent Wind grumbled.  
  
"Complaining about it won't change it, Silent Wind," Long Tail interrupted. "Only action will."  
  
"Since when have you been an expert on the subject?"  
  
"Since I decided to take action to change things. The Mans have been treating us unfairly for years. They might have stopped if we had said something, but we didn't. Now is the time to tell them we don't like this, before we starve or freeze as a result of unjust treatment."  
  
"You seem to have this thought out, Long Tail. But our parents and Wise Ear have always said that they are giving us a privilege in their hospitality, for letting us share with them."  
  
"That may have been how it was intended," Long Tail agreed. "But then they got used to us always helping them, sometimes even doing things that they couldn't, and took it for granted. Then they began to give us the dregs of whatever they had, and got accustomed to bullying us and became addicted to feeling superior to us. Also, I think they trod us down, because they're afraid of us."  
  
"Afraid of us?" asked Silent Wind, befuddled. "Why?"  
  
"Because of our differences. They don't stand nearly the chance of survival we do. Every year, one of them freezes to death or gets stomped by some animal we hunt. But none of us have. Because we're different. Better adapted. We, spread among us, have fur, prehensile tails that can act as extra hands, some have better hearing or better eyesight, or even something resembling claws. Do they? No. They have to make ten tools to do what we can do by ourselves. They're afraid they'll go extinct if they don't keep us as downtrodden as possible."  
  
Silent Wind considered his words. "That's an interesting perspective. What is it, exactly, that you propose we do about it? Negotiate?"  
  
"That's been tried," Long Tail reminded him. "Remember when Wise Ear went to them and came back with spears thrown after him? What else could he have possibly been doing, considering that he's the only one they talk to?"  
  
Silent Wind was quiet for a moment, pondering. It was true that Wise Ear was the only Mon that the Mans acknowledged. It did make sense, but he didn't entirely trust Long Tail, and said, "I'll ask him. I'll tell you if it changes my mind."  
  
Long Tail grinned and bade Silent Wind farewell. His cooperation was practically in the bag.  
  
About a day later, Long Tail's instincts and people skills proved correct. Silent Wind came by for a visit, and whispered over the fence, "You were right. He was trying to negotiate. He says we should have done something long ago, but nobody was up to it."  
  
"He should bring it up again. Practically the whole community is up to it now. And my buddies and I have a plan ready. If you can get Wise Ear to bring it up at the next community meeting, I'll reveal the plan then. Can you do that for me?"  
  
Silent Wind hesitated, and then said, "I suppose so. Do you mean the meeting tonight?"  
  
"That is the next one, isn't it?" Long Tail smiled. "Thanks, Silent Wind. It's a big help."  
  
"If you say so," answered Silent Wind reluctantly, and went on his way.  
  
The moment Silent Wind's back was turned, Long Tail did a little victory dance and galloped into the house.  
  
"We got him!" he exclaimed, causing Lithe to jump about a foot in the air. "Silent Wind is going to help us! He talked to Wise Ear, and he's been supporting action long before anyone else has! And he's bringing it up at the meeting tonight!"  
  
"Wait, Long Tail," Lithe interrupted. "I don't know what you're talking about; you're talking too fast! Can you repeat that, slower this time?"  
  
Long Tail relayed the entire incident to his mate, and she was thrilled.  
  
"This is wonderful!" she exclaimed. "We can finally get something going!"  
  
"Yes!" He picked her up and twirled her around. "It will happen!"  
  
The meeting went beautifully. The plan was accepted so quickly that Long Tail was nearly knocked off his feet. Soon everyone was making suggestions and improvements. They soon had nearly every detailed worked out. They would set it in motion in a month.  
  
Just a month! It was happening, not just a promise or a dream. Finally, the dream was becoming a reality.  
  
Would the Mans be in for a surprise!  
  
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Okay, that was mostly talk. All right, it was all talk. I'll make something happen next chapter. I've kind of cornered myself into it. I'd like to thank my first three reviewers for being so positive and for catching on to my little connections (Did anyone catch on to Slug Singer, by the way?). That bit that Pit Bull Lady gave me on the legends of an intelligent reptile race was very interesting, and I would like to thank her. So, Thank you, Pit Bull Lady! And I feel I need to thank whatever Pixar employee it was who had that little monster history bit put on the disc, because it was my inspiration! Of course, so was Fiddler on the Roof, and Clan of the Cave Bear, too. Okay, I'm rambling now. I'll just shut up now. 


	3. Lesson 3

Monster History, Lesson 3  
  
Long Tail, covered in ashes from the fire for camouflage, slunk around the rock near the entrance of the cave where the Mans lived. They were peacefully finishing their dinners in the twilight. They had no idea what would happen the moment the sun dipped below the horizon. Long Tail beckoned his helpers closer to him and stroked his fronds habitually. He watched the horizon closely for his cue. The sun's last rays disappeared below the horizon. Patience, he reminded himself, also reminding himself to breathe. There were so many things that could go wrong. The Mans could kill them all with their superior spear-throwers and slings. Again he chastised himself to be calm. He knew he wouldn't be half so worried if Lithe wasn't pregnant now, which drove the stakes for Long Tail higher than they were a month ago.  
  
Suddenly, the torches of his fellows appeared on the horizon. He tensed, waiting. One of the Mans noticed the sequins of light in the dark, a young boy who, by unlucky chance, happened to be Long Tail's half brother. He made an exclamation of surprise to his mother, who in turn alerted her mate, and within minutes everyone knew the torches were there. Conversations of curiosity and worry began. The male Mans rallied into a group in the front and went down to investigate. The females and the children stayed behind.  
  
"Can we go yet?" one of Long Tail's helpers inquired.  
  
"No," he said. "The women and children are still here. We have to wait for them to leave or for it to get darker."  
  
The helper made a noise of something in between impatience and discomfort and then turned around to relay the message to his buddies. The Mans children were conversing in a small clump. Suddenly, they all bolted in the directions where their fathers had gone. What a stroke of luck. Their mothers followed after their curious youngsters, leaving the camp empty for the plan to continue. Long Tail crawled forward an inch or two, looked around, saw that all was clear, and beckoned the helpers in after him.  
  
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"Okay," Sharp Mind said, getting the rebels' attention. "The sun's almost down. There are a few things we have to get clear."  
  
They all quieted down; even One Eye did, to Sharp Mind's surprise, so he continued. "First of all, we don't raid the Mans. That's the job of Long Tail's group, and if we interfere, we'll screw up his part of the plan. Second of all, we don't hurt the Mans unless they hurt us. Got it so far?"  
  
There were murmurs of agreement, although some were reluctant. Sharp Mind continued.  
  
"And, most importantly, we never touch the children of the Mans. Understood?"  
  
Again, they agreed reluctantly. After all of this struggling, they wanted some blood, some pain, from the Mans. They now had to cope with one more disappointment.  
  
"Alrighty then!" Sharp Mind shouted, happy to get Long Tail and Silent Wind's restrictions across, even though he hated them as much as the rebels he was commanding. "The sun's down, guys! Light your torches!"  
  
There were cheers that broke much of the tension as they scrambled to light their pitch and wood torches in the fires and began to march.  
  
*********************************  
  
The little boy saw a glimmer of light down the hill. He normally would have said that it was those funky Mons people cooking dinner, but they were moving around like they were alive. He tugged on the hide dress of his mother's.  
  
"Look, Mommy! Aren't they pretty?" he chirped happily, wanting to play with the lights.  
  
She almost simply agreed with him so she could go about her own business, but then she noticed their movement as well. She panicked. What could the Mons be doing? Or, if it wasn't them, what kind of evil spirit were they? She immediately alerted her mate, leaving her son bewildered.  
  
While the adults chatted worriedly, the little boy gathered his friends and cousins together to talk to them in mimicry of the adults.  
  
"Wonder why they're making such a big deal out of it?" his cousin asked.  
  
"Maybe the spirits are mad about something," a friend suggested.  
  
"No. The spirits are never this easy to notice. They like to keep you guessing. This is something from this world," the little boy said.  
  
"But what could it be?"  
  
They continued bickering amongst themselves as their daddies left.  
  
"I don't care what they are!" one child burst out. "I just want to see what's going on!"  
  
"Me too!" agreed another.  
  
"And me!" said one more child. "Wait. What are we talking about again?"  
  
Ignoring the last comment, the little boy pressed his companions, "Well, then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" With that, he bolted down the hill, friends trailing behind.  
  
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The Mans and the Mons were soon facing each other. Neither group was happy in the least. In moments, all hell would break loose.  
  
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Oh, my. Am I feeling like being evil today! I'm going to write the next chapter now, but I don't think I'll post till next week, just to drive you nuts! * Giggles like a maniac * Oh, dear. I don't believe my own behavior sometimes. Ciao! 


	4. Lesson 4

Monster History, Lesson 4  
  
The group of Mans and Mons faced each other, barely able to contain their animosity, but also unable to decide what to do. Finally, the chief of the Mans spoke.  
  
"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, with a reprimand in his voice. "You aren't really thinking about fighting us, are you? You're not people; why should we have any hesitation about killing all of you?"  
  
"Because you're related to some of them!" a clear female voice called from the crowd of Mons. She pushed her way forward, revealing herself to be none other than Long Tail's mother. "Or have you forgotten your son?"  
  
"I don't have a son in your number, deserter," the chief said acidly. "The only son I have is up in that cave."  
  
The woman scowled. "So you left me for some other woman. I'd say you're the deserter."  
  
Angry, the chief struck her. Suddenly, out of the darkness, Sharp Mind yelled, "Come on, everybody! Get them!" And then, both groups launched into the fray, in the first revolution in history.  
  
It was this scene that the adventurous young Mans saw. Never had they seen a Mon up this close before, and not even the adults had seen a battle before. The scene had scarred them for life. The chief's son, Long Tail's half-brother, was a violent and vengeful chief in his adulthood as a result. The mothers had come too late to save their children from the sight of battle, but barely soon enough to see any of them die.  
  
Long Tail slunk into the storerooms first, and was struck by how much there was. Then he was angered by it. It was hardly fair.  
  
He waved a hand in the dark to beckon his companions forward. This is for Lithe and our children, he thought as he grabbed some hides and started wrapping dried mammoth meat up in them. They've had their way long enough.  
  
The group of Mons had raided about three quarters of the place before they realized they couldn't carry any more. So with that they lit out as silently as they had come, their loot on their backs.  
  
But the sight they came to was hardly pretty. Four Mans and two Mons had died already in the battle, and several on each side were seriously injured. Suddenly, the Mans chief whistled. The sound startled both sides into stopping to stare at him.  
  
"I have had enough of you people!" he howled. "I don't want to see any of you ever again! You have three days to get out, or else we'll kill the rest of you!" He turned on heel and stomped back to the cave, the other Mans following in bewilderment.  
  
After the Mans had all left, the Mons' shock began to wear off and they started to talk amongst themselves.  
  
"Did he really mean it?"  
  
"Where on earth does he expect us to go?"  
  
"I don't think he can really kill us all. I mean, we killed more of them than they did of us, didn't they?"  
  
"I don't think we should leave, really. We should stand up to him again."  
  
"I think we should go. Then we'll never have to deal with any of them again, ever."  
  
"What's the point? They're everywhere! They'll just keep sending us away."  
  
"There has to be someplace without those snots!"  
  
"Yeah, right. They're so populous that they could exterminate us as easily as those flat-headed folk. We're doomed."  
  
Luckily, at that very moment, Long Tail and his crew emerged from the trees. "We may not be doomed. The Mans have been hiding more from us than just their food."  
  
Cringes in shame No tomatoes, please. I know I promised a week, and  
here it is almost a whole school year later. PLEASE, I hate tomatoes!! I  
like broccoli, though... Clears throat Okay, that was random. I am  
sorry it took me so long, but my English teacher has had me writing  
essays constantly all year, and it really sucks. Please review so I can  
know whether or not my huge gap of not writing affected the story at all.  
  
Meep. 


	5. Lesson 5

Monster History, Lesson 5  
  
Long Tail confidently addressed the recently banished group. "We may not be doomed. The Mans have been hiding more from us than just their food."  
  
Befuddled, Sharp Mind turned to his cohort. "What on earth are you talking about?"  
  
Long Tail grinned mischievously. "Of course, they may not even know it exists. But no matter. Either way, they'll be terrified of it."  
  
One Eye lost patience. "What is it?! The suspense is killing me!"  
  
The tailed Mon leaned forward for effect. "The most wonderful thing we could ask for."  
  
"You mean never having to deal with the Mans again?" someone shouted.  
  
"That and more," Long Tail confirmed.  
  
The murmurs changed from fearful to hopeful in an instant, even though there were a few skeptics. The idea of never having to deal with Mans again was highly tempting. Of course, the night does tend to make outrageous ideas more acceptable for some reason, but it turned out even daylight could not diminish the dream. They wanted to be free so badly they were ready to do anything, even risk their lives on the strangest gamble any history, Monster or otherwise, has ever seen.  
  
Long Tail snuck off that night with two of his stealthiest helpers to inspect their new discovery, what would be their home, to see what was dangerous, useful, edible, and all those other things must know about a new land. Long Tail had discovered the entrance to the new place behind a boulder in the storage room, in a corner full of dust and dirt. He had gone in alone the first time, so he knew what to expect. No one else did.  
  
Unlike the world they just left, this new one was in broad daylight when the other was dark outside. It was also somewhat tropical, a new sensation for those raised in the tundra. It seemed like paradise, full of apparently edible plants and animals, and brimming with the most beautiful flora they had ever set eyes on. The flowers, in full bloom, were all enormous, waxy, and iridescent. The trees were not unlike those of their old world, but they too were larger and iridescent. The place smelled sweet, like the seaside that surrounded it and the flowers and fruits native to it. Long Tail didn't think they could have asked for more.  
  
Long Tail entered first, and breathed the lovely scent in deeply. He turned towards his helpers, who were stunned to the point of letting their jaws drop. Long Tail smiled at them.  
  
"Isn't it perfect?" he said dreamily. "We don't even have to live on the same time as the Mans do. They can never bother us again."  
  
Dumbstruck, the helpers mutely nodded, completely in love with their new home.  
  
There were hazards in their new home, including some of the most bizarre animals they had ever seen. They sported larger and weirder versions of things that they had become familiar with at home. There were creatures with vicious razor sharp claws, others with large, spiraling horns in odd patterns, some even sported tentacles or wings. But the most startling thing about these creatures were their colors: even furry creatures sported purples, reds, blues, oranges, and greens. But because of the large variety of botanical life, they actually blended quite well. These odd adaptations made them both hazardous and fascinating. However, some were indeed edible, as Long Tail and his scouts quickly discovered while munching a tender purple reptile with gecko-like feet.  
  
Their new world, quite different from their steppe valley of origin, was also an island. Having lived inland all their lives, the three Mons were quite startled at the sight of the vast green-blue ocean.  
  
The island in truth was an unusually large atoll, an island built of sand and other sediments accumulated on an old coral reef. Though large for an island of its kind, it was significantly smaller than those formed from volcanic activity, and its entire circumference could be navigated by foot in a day and a half. The beaches, sporting white sand, were fringed in the tropical plants of the world. Further inland, however, the elevation rose slightly and some of the larger plants fell from their niches, allowing for a prevalence of grasses and shrubs in the center of the island, where a small cave that the original reef grew upon still stood. It was through this cave that the Mons gained access to this world through a thin place in the space-time continuum, and it was on the nearby meadow that the new community would be located. Excitedly grabbing samples to show their friends and family, Long Tail and the other two set off to tell the others of their new paradise.  
  
Once safely out of sight and earshot from the Mans cave community, the three returning explorers burst into excited ramblings of their new habitat.  
  
"Lithe! Lithe!" Long Tail called jubilantly. "Look! We found more than just a home! We found Paradise!"  
  
Lithe blinked in befuddlement. "What are you talking about? I mean, I knew you discovered something, but Paradise? Are you sure you're not dealing with exhaustion?" She placed the back of her hand on his forehead as if feeling for a fever. "Long Tail," she said concernedly, "you're unusually cold."  
  
Ignoring his mate's cryptic remark about his temperature, Long Tail happily continued to tell her about their new island residence. "Lithe, it's the most beautiful place ever. Here," he told her, handing her one of the island's flowers. She stared at it in disbelief. "These are all over the place. It's just gorgeous. It's warm and green, and surrounded by water full of colorful fish. The animals are all so strange! They're all sorts of funny colors and shapes, and you can eat some of them. And there are no Mans at all! We should never have to deal with them again."  
  
Lithe looked up at her husband's beaming face. "So that's what you were talking about last night? Some warm place full of giant flowers? Is this real? Is it really real?"  
  
Grinning like a Cheshire cat, Long Tail pulled Lithe into an embrace. "More real than anything else. Our child, and any others we may have, will all get to live and grow up in the most wonderful place ever, where they get to be who they are without any troubles from the Mans. What more could we ask for?"  
  
"A way to get all of us there," she said.  
  
Well...now wasn't that interesting? Again, I apologize for the delay; I took a month-long course in American Sign Language for college credit. . Soooo....yeah. This is going to be a slow moving story, both in posting and in pace. I seem to be favoring short chapters here; I don't know why. Anywho, if it's bugging you, I'm sorry, but too bad. Well...see you in Lesson 6!!  
  
Poofiemus 


	6. Lesson 6

Monster History, Lesson 6  
  
Long Tail looked puzzledly at his mate. "I beg your pardon?"  
  
"I said, how are we going to get there? Safely, I mean. We do have to travel through the Mans' village, after all," Lithe stated matter-of- factly.  
  
"I hadn't thought of that yet," Long Tail reluctantly admitted. "I was thinking of bringing it up at the next meeting for a brainstorm."  
  
Lithe scowled. "Long Tail, we don't have that kind of time! We have two days to evacuate everyone! Every little bit of time we have counts!"  
  
Long Tail cringed from being so accurately chastised. "Okay, love." He put on his best 'sad puppy face' and asked piteously, "Will you help me?"  
  
Lithe sighed. "You can be so brilliant sometimes, but other times you can be so pathetic. All right, I'll help you."  
  
The plan they came up with was fairly simple: sneak to the island in small groups. They would send the weaker ones like children in first with one or two stronger Mons, because it would be easier to sneak in unnoticed in the beginning and get harder later. When they proposed this plan to the village, they also decided who would go in what group. Despite her protests, Lithe was scheduled to go with the first group because of her pregnancy. Long Tail, Sharp Mind, and Silent Wind were scheduled to go last, also against their various family members' wishes.  
  
They also decided that they'd only take whatever they could carry on their backs, since they could make pretty much anything they wanted in their new residence. They were encouraged to take only things that they could not replace, such as a handmade sculpture from a mate or some other such sentimental thing. It would make traveling quicker, quieter, and easier if they kept their luggage light.  
  
The sun was down. Long Tail had caved into Lithe's request that he escort the first group, which consisted of mostly children with a couple of adults. Trying very hard to keep the kids quiet, many of whom were scared of the dark, was easier said than done. But he and the other adults had to keep them quiet; it would expose them if they weren't as silent as possible.  
  
"Okay, kids," Long Tail whispered, as comfortingly as he could, "let's go to our new place. But you won't get to go if you're not as quiet as a mouse. You understand?"  
  
Completely used to requests of this nature, the kids nodded. "Alright! We ready?"  
  
More nods, with a few enthusiastically whispered "Ready!"s from the braver ones, answered his question. Long Tail nodded and slunk off, with a menagerie of tiny Mons behind him.  
  
As Long Tail carefully led the first group to the special new place in the twilight, he began to wonder about some new changes in him. First of all, he was far more aware of temperature changes than he used to be. He also seemed capable of clinging to things in a way none of the others were, save for the two scouts he had taken with him. Could it have something to do with the new world? Stop it, he told himself. You've a more important task at hand.  
  
He stopped to help a furry four-year-old over a large rock and let the others get a little ahead to a more stable area. But through a stroke of unfortunate timing, a Man and his son were coming down the slope, making a bee-line for Long Tail and the toddler. Long Tail's honed senses picked up on this, and he did the only thing he could think of.  
  
He shoved the toddler into a large gap between the rocks and put himself on top of the youngster, and then willed himself not to be seen.  
  
At the time, it made sense to Long Tail to do so, but later he would marvel at his luck and stupidity. He would later swear that the human looked right at him and didn't notice him. In fact, reflecting to himself, it was as though he'd never even been seen at all.  
  
The rest of the first group's travels went without a hitch, but the incident on the rocks left Long Tail perturbed for the rest of the night. Even as he said goodbye to Lithe and escorted the second group, he puzzled over it the back of his mind. How could simply willing himself not to be seen possibly have worked? He'd no idea what happened, and he wouldn't for some time.  
  
Due to the near-flawlessness of the first two groups, everyone thought that the other two would go as impeccably. However, that assumption proved exceedingly wrong.   
  
Short chapter, I know. But I have a long author's note for you (As if that makes up for it! ). Anyhow, the other night I was reading my first MI fic, Stuck in the Human World, and I thought, "Whoa. My writing has really improved. This is so pathetic in comparison to what I could do now!" And then I thought, "What if I were to rewrite and repost it?" So I wanted to ask you guys if that'd be okay. I'd essentially rewrite and replace the chapters in order, keeping the same basic plot, but improving the narration, imagery, and characterization as much as I could. So tell me in your reviews what you think of this proposition, as well as what you think of the chapter!  
  
Also, I realized that I'd promised a sequel to Stuck in the Human World in the form of an MI/Harry Potter crossover and hadn't yet delivered it. I am working on it, but have been significantly delayed by the fact that it is proving to be an exceedingly complex story. I'm working with the already- complex Harry Potter premise, adding the Monsters, Inc. characters, and throwing in quite a few characters of my own in this vast network of events. Plus I've been busy with a dozen other things, including college- level band and an advanced English class. So it'll be quite a while before you see that one, and I may do a shorter sequel first to set up some of the characters and what's happened in the intervening time. I just felt I owed you an explanation.  
  
Poofie 


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